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And while stock markets liquidity isn’t getting any better, market internals is showing signs of improvement as shorter duration on kneejerk S&P 500 selling points to a decrease in speculative reactions to news flows. And if investors were indeed turning bearish longer term, they would buy-the-dip less often and start to profit take consistently on rallies.
A dovish hike from BoE hiked 25bps as expected, but no dissenters were looking for 50bps.
Its been a remarkable turn of events in FX land even though a hawkish Fed, which one would have thought would have supported the US dollar. However, the underlying risk tone was improving with the ‘china put’ and Ukraine optimism. Hence, the certainty allows people to re-enter SPX longs, and then FX tends to have that mechanical reaction to chase risk higher. Still, we need to be careful how we position FX as this was not the typical reaction one would have expected, but perhaps pricing in peak Fed hawkishness will allow the currency markets to climb.
While I have some sympathy with the view that we have now reached peak hawkishness, the fact is that this was still an extremely hawkish pivot from the Fed both in substance as well as quantitatively, with Fed Chair Powell making it quite clear during the Q&A that they will become even more aggressive if needed to tame inflation even at the expense of growth.
Still, the Fed thinks it can achieve the impossible trinity of hiking rates, bringing inflation down while unemployment remains below long-run neutral. The bond and currency markets say no! The US curve bull flatted, and the dollar sagged across the board. Even a dovish hike by the BoE still had folks buying GBP straight up vs the dollar.
The US dollar no longer appears to be the cleanest dirty shirt in the laundry this week as the Fed starts to walk the impossible trinity tight rope. But we also have very different reactions at the big three G-10 central banks.
The ECB is focused entirely on pulling inflation down; the Fed is trying cool the economy and bring growth back towards the trend, but also get inflation down; the Bank of England is far more concerned by growth than inflation – easily the least hawkish of the three (though it started the hiking cycle some months ago). The key for the BoE seems to be no more than containing inflation expectations rather than chasing inflation down.
The current imbroglio between Russia and Ukraine has brought about economic hardship to the region as the sanctions and counter sanctions in addition to the effect of wars has waned on the economy.
The Russian ruble leads the plunge and has robbed off on countries previously associated with the Soviet Union and this is expected to continue until the peace talk between the two countries lead to a ceasefire.
The current situation has made trading decisions easier as those nations currencies continue to spiral downward meaning most currencies outside of the Union will appreciate against them.
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So, in order to control inflation in the economy, the Fed signalled that it could raise interest rates soon with a possibility of three rate hikes in 2022.
With the market expecting an increase in Fed interest rates soon, US stock markets tumbled in the early days of 2022. The Dow Jones Index, or DJI, fell from 36,799 to 34,079 (as at 18 Feb 2022) and the NASDAQ index fell from 15,832 to 13,548 (as at 18 Feb 2022).
Many US tech stocks also fell from grace with the likes of Nvidia, Microsoft, Tesla and Apple tumbling around 20-30 percent.Generally, there has been an inverse relationship between the Fed funds rate and the performance of the stock market. An increase in the Fed funds rate typically will result in a fall in the stock market.
This interest rate, also known as the federal funds rate, is the interest rate at which financial institutions borrow and lend their excess reserves to each other overnight. As stated by law, US banks must maintain a percentage of their deposits in an account with the Fed which is known as the required reserve ratio. This is to prevent a bank run from happening. A bank run occurs when many clients withdraw their money from the banks simultaneously, and this may affect the liquidity of the banks.
The required reserve ratio is calculated based on the end-of-day balances in the bank’s account averaged over a two-week reserve maintenance period.
So, if one bank finds that it has more than what is required, it can lend the excess to other banks that expect a shortfall in balances and earn interest from it. This interbank lending interest rate is based on the fed funds rate.
How will an increase in the Fed funds rate affect consumers?
When the Fed raises its interest rates, it also influences the prime lending rates that the banks charge their borrowers. Prime rates are the prevailing interest rates that banks charge their customers who have the best creditworthiness. As the fed rates increase, the prime lending rates move in tandem with the increase. This increase also affects consumers’ interest rates for bank loans, credit card loans and adjustable-rate mortgages.
The reason why there is this ripple effect of interest rates increases is because as the borrowing of excess funds increases, banks incur a higher cost to borrow to maintain the required reserve ratio.
The banks then pass on this increase in costs of borrowing to its consumers. Therefore, the prime lending rates increase. And since the prime lending rate sets the benchmark for interest rates of the loans, customers who did not have the best creditworthiness will face a higher interest rate than the prime lending rate as the banks experience more risk as the creditworthiness of customers drops.Inflation is the rate of increase in prices over a given period of time. Therefore, CPI is used as an indicator of inflation in a particular economy.
CPI is a measure that takes the weighted average of prices of a basket of goods and services which consumers require for their day-to-day life.
In January 2022, the US Consumer Price Index, or CPI, rose to 7.5% which was a 40-year high. This means that the US is facing high inflation as the overall cost of living has been increasing drastically.
Inflation is necessary for economic growth as it helps to increase consumption and consumer demand which eventually increases the GDP of an economy.
The estimated benchmark of inflation for a developed nation is around 2% and is meant to stimulate economic growth. However, anything above this could be damaging to the economy as it could affect the livelihoods of its population.
One solution is to entice developers to find and patch bugs through bug bounty programs – something that today’s guest, Robert Rowley is very familiar with. It’s something his employer, Patchstack, runs on a global scale! They also maintain a database of vulnerabilities to help with the bug bounty program, as well as keep site owners informed; and now Plesk customers get Patchstack integration included in the WP Toolkit.
WordPress accounts for over 40% of the web, so security is a big, important topic for site owners. Luckily, both Plesk and Patchstack are dedicated to keeping WordPress sites safe! In this episode, Robert tells us about Patchstack’s global bug bounty program to help fund developers keeping open-source software safe.
We also discuss how security ownership is a team effort, from the site owner to the hosting company. Vulnerabilities can happen at any level, so all stakeholders need to be vigilant.
Finally, we talk a bit about risk analysis, how to stay on top of patches and vulnerabilities, and what the future of site security looks like. Let’s have a listen!
Bug Bounty Programs are a way for developers to get paid for finding and patching bugs. They are especially important for big, open-source projects like WordPress.
Patchstack runs a global bug bounty program where they guide and pay developers to find and patch bugs.
Patchstack also maintains a patch and vulnerability database, which they use to notify site owners of patches to keep their sites safe. And now, Plesk’s WP Toolkit integrates directly with Patchstack – meaning customers will automatically get these notifications.
Site security is a team effort. It’s easy to assume it’s “someone else’s” problem, but the truth is everything from a poor server environment to a weak password can put a site at risk.
2-Factor Authentication is an easy way to improve security, even if weak passwords do exist.
It’s important to patch vulnerabilities as soon as one is available. If there is no patch, it’s important to do risk analysis. If there’s some other protection (passwords or firewalls), you probably have some time. If not, you may need to change products.
A lot has changed over the last 20 years in site security, and the current environment favors site owners. However, things can always change.
More utilities give site owners the power to make moves and keep their sites secure.
In the future, Web3 and blockchain tech could be used to help secure sites because they are basically public ledgers. The experimentation now will make way for more practical applications.
For those who haven’t been keeping up, World of Warcraft Classic is a special version of Blizzard’s MMORPG that plays as it did back in 2004, before the game’s many updates and expansions. Blizzard has released a WoW Classic demo this weekend, which can be downloaded and played by anybody with a BlizzCon Virtual Ticket. You can get some more details on the WoW Classic demo, right here.
In other World of Warcraft news, Blizzard has also released a dramatic new Battle for Azeroth cinematic, entitled “Lost Honor.” We see Alliance leader King Anduin Wrynn confront the imprisoned orc warrior Varok Saurfang, and it seems like the two may be planning to form a new partnership. How will this alter the course of the Alliance/Horde conflict? We shall see. Check out the Lost Honor cinematic, below.
World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth’s next major content update, Tides of Vengeance, is currently being put through its paces on the Public Test Realm, and should be available to all, soon. You can get some additional info on the update here.
Finally, one more tidbit – Blizzard has revealed their annual WoW charity pet, Womper the baby yeti. If you buy Womper in game, or in physical plushie form, before December 31 all proceeds will go to Code.org, a non-profit that encourages girls and underrepresented minorities to get into programming and other STEM fields.
Developer Blizzard Entertainment has taken to the official site of MMORPG World of Warcraft to remind players that the future of the game will be revealed on April 19.
The team is excited to share what they have been working on, so mark your calendars! The new expansion reveal is coming April 19 at 9:00 a.m. PDT / 18:00 CEST, and can be watched live on Youtube and Twitch. Of course, those following the game sources and content creators might already have a hint at what’s coming!
“World of Warcraft has ignited imaginations through rich storytelling and expansive worlds that prevail throughout the Shadowlands expansion. From the hopeless depths of the Maw to the ethereal plains of Zereth Mortis, the Shadowlands delivers a world that challenges heroes to confront the forces that threaten to upset the cosmic balance between life and death. With the story in the Shadowlands coming to a conclusion, the time is at hand to get a sneak peek at what’s next for the heroes of Azeroth.”
It’s still unknown exactly how long the reveal will take, just like the content of the expansion is yet unknown (aside from featuring dragons in some capacity given the name), but at least now you have a time to set aside for the reveal itself. Keep your eyes peeled for all the details as the information arrives on the 19th.
You could argue that you don't need to min-max unless you're a mythic raider or pushing high keys in Mythic Plus dungeons. But pretty much every player I know will always follow guides to optimise their output, and it won't be any different with the Shards system. It's fun to get the most out of your chosen class and spec and push to see what you can do. But it's also incredibly demoralising to realise that the time (and gold) you've spent crafting your current legendaries has just been a waste.
Looking back over previous expansions and the various power systems that have come and gone, I can't remember anything that feels quite as disjointed as what we're about to get with 9.1. Of course, no system is ever perfect; even when we did have tier set bonuses, some were always way better than others. And the recent Corruption system in BFA got out of hand towards the end, especially for those that could stack Twilight Devastation. Maybe the Shards of Domination system will be better than it looks on paper, but the hoops we're going to have to jump through to find out honestly makes me wonder if I can be bothered, and that makes me sad.
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I really don't envy the WoW devs at all. I can't even begin to imagine how hard it must be to balance everything while keeping the game engaging for the variety of players that World of Warcraft caters to. I honestly hope my gut reaction is proven wrong. Like many others, I've been looking forward to this update for ages, but the news of a new power system that will essentially negate the work I've put in over the last seven months just leaves me feeling cold.
World of Warcraft impresses with its rich history and the scope of the game’s universe, which come to the fore in the expansion. Shadowlands. From the hopeless depths of the Maw to the otherworldly plains of Zereth Mortis, players in Shadowlands encounter a world where they can fight against forces that threaten to upset the cosmic balance between life and death. But the story of Shadowlands is coming to an end, and it’s time to find out what awaits the heroes of Azeroth next.
It is not known whether Blizzard will be able to, if not please the players, then at least surprise them. After all, judging by the leaks, the next addition is called Dragonflight and will be dedicated to the dragons of Azeroth. The five great dragonflights have lost some of their power since the suppression of Deathwing’s rebellion, and it may be up to us to make them great again.
The two sides subsequently agreed to an eight-year extension that runs through the 2028 season. Financial terms of that deal were not disclosed.
"Nike has been a long-time and trusted partner of [the] NFL and we're thrilled to extend our relationship with them," Brian Rolapp, the NFL’s chief media and business officer said in a statement at the time. "The NFL and Nike are a powerful combination and we anticipate working closely with them on several programs, including youth and player initiatives."Nike’s partnership with the NFL has occasionally placed the company at the center of league drama. The latest instance occurred earlier this month, when Nike pulled Washington Redskins apparel from its online store amid mounting scrutiny of the team’s name, which critics argue is racist.
In 2018, Nike launched a major marketing campaign starring free agent NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick to commemorate the 30th anniversary of its “Just Do It” slogan. At the time, Kaepernick was suing NFL team owners for allegedly colluding to keep him out of the league for his role in national anthem protests.
Nike participates in a number of NFL initiatives, including the league’s annual “Salute to Service” campaign. Proceeds from sales of Nike-manufactured gear benefits a number of military charities.
Over the past week social media has been ablaze with theories and ideas regarding an orange Browns jersey that was listed for sale on the Fanatics Cleveland Browns Shop website.To get more news about custom nfl jerseys cheap for sale, you can visit custom-nfljersey.com official website.
Since releasing the redesigned uniforms last season, and sparked again by the release of the 75th anniversary jerseys, many Browns fans have been clamoring for an orange jersey to be added to the team's game day uniform rotation.
In the midst of the outcries for orange jerseys, Fanatics, a retailer offering officially licensed fan gear, had for sale a Nick Chubb orange jersey in a design fans had not seen before.Many were adamant about the jersey being a leak of a new game day uniform the Browns were planning on announcing this season, an idea which was fueled when the jerseys soon said "SOLD OUT."
But as executive vice president and member of the Browns ownership group James Wood "JW" Johnson III said on Twitter Thursday, the jerseys are not a leak and are not going to be game worn jerseys.Still, that confirmation from the top of the Browns organization was not enough for some and the conspiracies continued, with claims that Johnson was doing "damage control" and covering up a uniform leak.
So, with a little free time on our hands, we went down the Jerseygate rabbit hole (yes, I'm calling it Jerseygate) and reached out to Fanatics for more details and have some pretty boring news to report.
As Johnson confirmed, no, the jerseys were not a leak.The Nick Chubb Orange Cleveland Browns Inverted Legend jersey on the Fanatics website is a "fashion jersey" designed by Nike, a spokesperson for Fanatics clarified.
Each NFL team has a similar jersey design in their own colorway, all designed by Nike and none of them actual game day apparel.And as for the conspiracies about the product being pulled after a few days because it was a leak, that's also false. Browns fans are just so passionate about the orange jerseys that they sold out very quickly.
Don't fret though, Fanatics said that the orange jerseys that have caused such a stir online will be restocked in the coming days and weeks. You can check the inventory status here.
So, with that cleared up, Browns fans can go back to the regularly scheduled discussions about Baker Mayfield's contract extension and if rookie Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah is actually a linebacker or a safety.The Miami Dolphins drafted Jaylen Waddle in the first round of the NFL Draft a year ago, and most analysts listed his player comp as Tyreek Hill. Now, the two will be lining up together on offense. So why not celebrate with a new Miami Dolphins Tyreek Hill jersey?
Waddle came out of Alabama at 5-foot-10 and 182 lbs., which was nearly identical to Hill’s 5-foot-10, 185 lbs. frame. Hill ran the 40-yard dash in 4.29 seconds and Waddle was just behind him at 4.37 seconds.This is a special-event item. The jersey will be shipping within 2-4 weeks of Hill’s number being confirmed by Miami and the NFL.
Shady brokerage with no regulation. This is how we’d describe AlpsMarkets broker after the research we’ve done. There is not a single good thing to say about this company.To get more news about mirollex, you can visit wikifx.com official website.
Speaking of Alps Markets regulation, we’ve determined it does not exist. The broker represents itself as a home of over 200,000 traders. However, to have this number of clients, you cannot be anonymous.
Every legit broker needs to be transparent and give their traders all the necessary information – the company owner, location, regulation, and minimum deposit. However, according to our AlpsMarkets reviews, this broker does not provide any of those. We did not want to leave our job half done. Since the broker does not give any information about the location or the owner, most likely, it’s based offshore. In offshore countries, regulatory bodies tend to look over shady companies like the one we speak about.
We’ve checked several regulatory registers – FSC, VFSC, FSA looking for the answer is Alps Markets regulated. Since we could not find the company anywhere, now we can safely say the broker is unregulated and not legit.Since the broker is highly shady and unregulated, we wondered if any regulator noticed its activities. We found two reports coming from Czech National Bank, CNB, and a Polish regulator, KNF.
Both of these regulators warn citizens against trading the name AlpsMarkets and state that those defrauded will have a hard time returning funds since we’re dealing with a bogus operation.According to AlpsMarkets reviews from Trustpilot and other reputable websites, the broker is rated as poor. Why? Because it does not allow withdrawals and uses its platform to defraud clients.
Since we couldn’t find the regulation, we’ve checked the Alps Markets trading platform. We wanted to see if there is possibly something that can attract 200,000 traders. The broker is offering only a web trader and a mobile trader, and you cannot access any of those before opening an account and making a deposit.
Since we are not willing to deposit with an unregulated company, we could not gather much data on the trading platform. All we could see on the website is that the maximum leverage this broker provides is 1:500.
Like many unregulated brokers, this one puts your money at too high risk as well. Be aware of the AlpsMarkets scam and stay away from unregulated brokers like Global CTB or Profit Trade. It will save your money, nerves and time!Another question without an answer. Nowhere on the website of this anonymous broker, we couldn’t find the information on which assets you can trade. Since we couldn’t access the platform as well, we are leaving this as a question mark.
The same thing stands for Alps Markets minimum deposit. If you check the FAQ section, you will see that you need to speak to customer support in order to get the answer.
Like many scam brokers, this one evaluates your financial situation first and then gives you the amount to deposit. Yet, most likely, after this deposit, you will face withdrawal issues, like many other clients that published AlpsMarkets reviews.According to warnings and AlpsMarkets reviews, we can conclude the broker operates in the EU, mostly countries such as the UK, Czech Republic, Poland, Austria, and Denmark. Also, we’ve found some of the reviews from Australia.
When it comes to prohibited areas, the broker lists only the USA, along “with some other entities” that remain unnamed.According to our knowledge, the main difference is in a spread that starts getting better by having a Silver account (we do not see what’s better) and the level of expertise your financial adviser has. For the Basic account, there’s no adviser at all, while having a Gold account connects you with a VIP adviser. Yet, since AlpsMarkets regulation is highly questionable, so is the advisers’ true expertise.
Based on everything we’ve seen, the AlpsMarkets trading scam has reached the level of no Demo account and no minimum deposit listed. If you want to check the offer, get ready for a call from some sort of support that will tell you the minimum (particularly made up for you.)
Once you try to withdraw your funds from the AlpsMarkets platform, you will be declined. Many clients stated they submitted withdrawal requests an endless number of times and each time had been denied under different excuses. Sometimes, they didn’t provide enough documents. Sometimes, the broker needs time to process such a request.
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